Throughout unit 3 of our chemistry course, we expanded our knowledge in the world of stoichiometry. As a class, we were able to learn about calculating moles, theoretical yield, and percent yield. Today we're going to discuss a real world application of stoichiometry (quantities in chemical reactions) and take a look at what would happen if the wrong quantities of baking powder were used while baking.
Baking powder is a chemical leavening agent that is used in mixtures to help them rise during the baking process. Baking powder consists of baking soda, acid salts,(cream of tartar and sodium aluminum sulfate) and cornstarch to absorb any moisture in order to ensure that a reaction does not take place until a liquid is added to the batter.
The reaction that occurs once liquid is added to the batter looks like this:
The reaction that occurs once liquid is added to the batter looks like this:
NaHCO3 + KHC4H4O6 → KNaC4H4O6 + H2O + CO2
If the quantities aren’t right, too much baking powder would cause the batter to be bitter tasting. The batter can also rise rapidly and then collapse.The air bubbles in the batter grow too large and break, which causes the batter to fall. If too little of a quantity of baking powder is added to the mixture, it would result in a rock solid cake that has poor volume.
Based on the evidence presented, I think having the proper quantities of baking powder is vital in any kind of mixture. Without the proper quantities we wouldn’t be able to bake the precious delicacy of cakes and other sweets. If too much is added there wouldn’t really be a cake at all as it would collapse leaving us with a blob of straight up batter. Too little would result in a nearly inedible dessert seeing as it would be rock solid.
If the quantities aren’t right, too much baking powder would cause the batter to be bitter tasting. The batter can also rise rapidly and then collapse.The air bubbles in the batter grow too large and break, which causes the batter to fall. If too little of a quantity of baking powder is added to the mixture, it would result in a rock solid cake that has poor volume.
Based on the evidence presented, I think having the proper quantities of baking powder is vital in any kind of mixture. Without the proper quantities we wouldn’t be able to bake the precious delicacy of cakes and other sweets. If too much is added there wouldn’t really be a cake at all as it would collapse leaving us with a blob of straight up batter. Too little would result in a nearly inedible dessert seeing as it would be rock solid.
Questions:
If too much baking soda were added, how bitter would the dessert be? Would it still be considered edible despite the wrong quantities of baking soda?
Reference page:
Jarowski, Stephanie. “Baking Powder and Baking Soda (Bicarbonate).” Cocoa Powder - Joyofbaking.com, 2018, www.joyofbaking.com/bakingsoda.html.
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